


Justice

by BelleWrites (sunleyemrys)



Series: Champions Twins AU [8]
Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, M/M, failed experiment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-16
Updated: 2018-11-16
Packaged: 2019-08-24 08:04:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16636055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunleyemrys/pseuds/BelleWrites
Summary: An alternate ending for DA2, in which Anders Act 3 quest actually attempts and succeeds (or not) to separate him from Justice.





	Justice

“Anders,” Garrett’s voice was soft with worry. “This formula, its all wrong. This wont separate you and Justice. We need something else.”

The mage came over to examine Garrett’s work, nodding, “Damn, you are right. What do you suggest then love?”

He went over to a dusty shelf, pushing aside crumbling scrolls and tattered pages. “Father collected as much as he could about magic, some of it was complete shit. Fake, or at worst so incorrect it would kill the person who attempted it. But there was a legend, told by an Avvar that passed through the village. About their mages housing an ancestor spirit to guide them.”

“He wrote it down, and its around here somewhere, I know it.” Papers fluttered to the ground as Garrett became more earnest in his search, opening an old chest, sneezing at the cloud of dust.

“How did they release the spirit? If they did.” Anders asked, his hope rising.

“That’s what I am looking for. Father convinced the man to share the ritual with him.” He reached the bottom of the chest and pulled out a small brown leather diary. “Here it is.”

He flipped through; recipes for potions and tonics, herbs and their different properties, a few diagrams, and finally, in Malcolm’s firm handwriting, a detailed ritual.

“This is it. What do you think? Can it be done?” Garrett handed the book to Anders, watching his love’s face shift into joy.

“Yes, I think so. We need some time to prepare though. And we should not do this in the city.” He closed the book and kissed Garrett passionately. “Maker bless your family’s nosiness.”

***

Garrett paced, watching Anders ready the ritual. It was one of the few times he found the sound of waves crashing against the rocks distracting. “Anders? How much longer?” He walked the same steps, five east, six south, five west, six north. Back and forth, counting it out slowly.

“Nearly there.” Anders striped off his coat, sitting cross-legged in the sand in front of a small bowl.

Incense wafted in the breeze, and Garrett knew the smell, it was identical to the soap he used, he gave Anders a shocked expression, earning a wink. “I need something to ground my spirit, and you ground me. It was fitting I thought.”

Garrett dropped a kiss on Anders’s head, stepping back and closing a circle around him.

“Whenever you are ready love.” He said, closing his eyes, letting his magic senses take over, feeling Anders in the center, shining bright while just a hint of darkness he recognized as the Taint.

Magic began coiling inside the ring, and he felt the pull on his spirit as the ritual began. He held tight on the barrier, as much for Anders as for himself.

It felt like an eternity, but there was a pop, and the light within the ring faded. Anders was slumped forward, sweat covering his body, black veins standing out across his flesh. Garrett moved to break the circle, but Anders shouted, “No! Stop! Stay back!”

Anders did not sound right, that hoarse commanding tone Garrett always associated with Justice, but with something else mixed in.

He walked carefully around, meeting Anders’s face, his eyes were black, and dark blood dripped from his nose and eyes.

“Anders?” He felt sick, something had gone wrong.

The being cackled, “Oh, don’t you wish little bird. He is still here, buried deep inside, but no. Not anymore, not in control. I am.”

“Justice?”

The being shook Anders’s head, “Wrong again, but oh how the Healer and Justice tried to keep me hidden away. In a cage, but no more. A body cannot house more than one soul, Justice and Anders could never be sundered, and all this little ritual did was free me.” It knocked over the bowl, spilling lyrium and incense into the sand.

“What are you?” Garrett fought to keep his voice even.

The black eyes met his and flashed with light, Anders’s body beginning to twist and take a new shape. “The Elder One. You thought you had killed me, but you failed. Now you get to live with that knowledge, briefly though it is.”

Garrett back peddled with a gasp, “No. No! You died!”

“And was reborn!” Clawed hands reached for him, but Garrett ran, magic and fear moving him quickly. Tears stung his eyes, his heart broken as he vowed to bring justice for Anders.


End file.
